Stores take aim at holiday bylaw
Unifor says it will fight any attempts by retailers to be open on holidays such as Labour Day
Canada’s largest private-sector union will fight retailers’ attempts to scrap the city of Toronto’s holiday shopping bylaw, which requires most stores to close on statutory holidays, such as Labour Day.
Unifor says it’s seeking a meeting with city hall officials in the wake of reports that retailers want to get rid of the bylaw.
“In an industry that’s not very well paid, and where they already have chaos in their family life, do these stores need to be open these nine extra days? What does that do when people are already working crazy shifts?” said Jenny Ahn, assistant to Unifor’s national president, for the retail sector.
The Canadian Federation of Independent Grocers says it’s hoping to reopen the issue at city council on Sept. 30, when a report from the city solicitor is expected on the impact of a recent court ruling on one section of the bylaw.
“It’s customers that should decide store openings, not councillors,” federation vice-president Gary Sands said in an interview.
The bylaw is coming up for debate after a court ruled that Longo Brothers Fruit Markets Ltd., an independent grocer, met the definition of a business that sells “prepared food” and was therefore exempt from the requirement to close.
The decision could theoretically mean that other supermarkets might open on statutory holidays, Sands says, since most sell some prepared foods.
The city argued the exemption was meant to apply only to restaurants and fast-food outlets. But the wording of the bylaw was sufficiently vague that Justice of the Peace Sheine Mankovsky said in an October 2014 decision that Longo’s qualified for the exemption. In June, appeal court judge Marvin Zuker upheld the lower-court ruling.
The city’s licensing department and legal staff have been reviewing the decision, which could result in the city redrafting that section of the bylaw to make its intention clearer.
But the grocers say they plan to press council to remove the ban on holiday shopping for all retailers.
The retail industry has changed. Some grocers now carry as much or more prepared foods as nearby restaurants, Sands said. Many retailers now compete with Internet-only stores that are open 24/7 year round, retailers also note.
As well, Sands questions how a city as multicultural as Toronto can defend a bylaw that recognizes some religious holidays but not others. “How do you explain to a retailer that Ramadan isn’t as impor- tant as Christmas,” Sands said.
The nine holidays are: Christmas Day, New Year’s Day, Good Friday, Easter Sunday, Victoria Day, Canada Day, Labour Day, Thanksgiving Day and Family Day.
Unifor says it’s closely monitoring the situation, as whatever happens in Toronto can have repercussions across the province. The union plans to request a meeting with city staff to press their case.
The bylaw has already been thoroughly reviewed in the past three to four years, Ahn noted, saying the city opted not to make any changes.
Studies show retailers don’t make any more money by staying open an extra day as consumers simply shift their spending, Ahn added.
In the meantime, it’s unclear whether any additional retailers plan to defy the bylaw on Labour Day, which falls on Sept. 7 this year. Some have done so in the past, despite the risk of receiving a ticket that comes with a maximum penalty of $50,000.
Some retailers are exempt from the bylaw, including small drug stores, convenience stores and stores in five designated tourist areas, including the Eaton Centre.